Marc Leishman Q&A

AHEAD of the second LIV Golf Adelaide event, Marc Leishman representing the Ripper GC team, relives the epic week from 12 months ago and shares some of his favorite stories from a memorable career. Marc sat down with Garrett Johnston to remember some fun moments and in looking ahead to the 2024 event.

How are you enjoying being a part of LIV Golf?

It’s been awesome. The camaraderie amongst the teams is really good. It’s sort of like we’re all on one big team with all the controversy that’s gone on between the two tours. Having said that, I loved my time on the PGA Tour as well, but this stage of my career with young kids – it’s nice to be spending a bit more time at home.

Since joining LIV you’ve gotten to spend a couple months over the Australian summer back home at Warrnambool. How has that been?

It’s been great. Our house is really close to the golf course and my oldest boy is really into golf right now. We played a lot of golf there. I have a lot of great memories, especially with him now being twelve, memories come flooding back to me from when I was a kid and now I get to see my son do it. My dad gets to see us as well and live it out for the second time. It’s so good to get back to Australia and play a bit of golf and catch up with old friends and the familiar faces around the golf club.

What’s a favorite story at Warrnambool GC growing up?

I remember it scared the crap out of my dad. There was a Tiger snake that someone had already found and knocked on the head on the course. I thought it would be pretty funny to put it in my golf bag and lay it in the backyard. And as I thought, dad was mortified that I had brought this snake home. Like, what are you thinking?
It was dead but it was very funny. He was shocked. He knew I wouldn’t be stupid enough to pick up a live one, but he called me an idiot and we had a laugh about it. We still laugh about it now. That was an interesting one. 

A good mate of mine, Leroy, used to go out to the course with me and we’d have chipping contests around the different greens, and we’d be climbing trees and hitting shots out of different trees and just had great memories like that.

You also got bit by a snake with your son on a golf course, right?

Yeah, I was caddying for him at home (Virginia Beach) and the kid he was playing with hit it up the grass on the left of the first fairway. I got bit by a snake in my achilles and started bleeding. There were two fang marks and it was probably poisonous and then on that green I started feeling light headed and dizzy. I said to the other dad that was caddying, ‘mate I just got bit by a snake. If I pass out, can you call an ambulance because it’s probably not going to be good.’

Then about five holes later I felt like I was going to vomit, then somehow a few minutes later the nausea just passed. I had a massive lump on my leg for about three months (laughs).

Your home course Virginia Beach National is a public course, do you like that laid back, everyman idea?

Yeah, I think I fit in well at a public course. It’s like where I played when I grew up. My dad was a bricklayer, and my mom was a nurse. Obviously, my situation’s changed a bit now, but I still know the value of a dollar. I relate to the people out there and really enjoy my time.

How much are you looking forward to coming back to LIV Golf Adelaide?

Yeah, I can’t wait. Last year in Adelaide was just amazing. That was one of the coolest weeks I’ve had on the golf course with that crowd support. It’s a great course and great entertainment off the course too. Just the atmosphere around there that week was certainly not something that I’d experienced. I felt like I was a rock star for a week. You couldn’t go anywhere without getting asked for pictures and autographs and that was really cool. I’m looking forward to getting back and enjoying it again and hopefully we can have a really good week as a team and individually as well.

Last year you drank beer out of a shoe at that event. How was that?

That was interesting. I got to be honest, I prefer to drink beer out of a can (laughs). It was a nice cold beer as it was going into the shoe, and it was lukewarm and not very nice coming out. And the Premier of Adelaide was egging me on to do it, so I had to do it. 

And that part of Australia has been so hungry for more pro golf for some time, right?

Yes, it has, particularly Adelaide. When I got my Tour card through the Nationwide Tour, that was the last professional event I believed played there; 2008. For them to have LIV Golf Adelaide played there, they support sport unbelievably well so it’s great to see.

Last year I went over there for a cricket match. It’s a six-hour drive and I went there just for one day of cricket. It’s an awesome place that I really enjoy going to. I can’t wait for LIV Adelaide this year. I want to get back there and enjoy those epic crowds again.

You and your caddie Matty Kelly go back a long way, what’s one of your favorite stories with him?

Matty came over early in 2008 from Australia and he maxed out two credit cards between March and September. So, he said to me, ‘mate, I’ve maxed out two credit cards and I’m going to have to head home and get a real job.’ I told him I felt terrible, and I finished second that week and won a couple weeks later by 11. 

The next year I was on the PGA Tour. In my first ever Tour event I went T12 at Sony Open in Hawaii and won $92,000. We felt like the richest blokes in the world. We had a redeye flight home to California where I was an alternate for the Bob Hope Classic. I remember he goes into an ABC store and buys a gallon of milk. And I’m like ‘what are you doing?’ And he’s like ‘we have to go to the beach.’ So we get to the beach and he chugs the whole bottle of milk. Then he stuck his fingers down his throat and projectile vomited all over the beach. I remember I was on the ground rolling around in the sand laughing. It was a celebration we’ll never forget.

Later that year you would play with Tiger for the first time, how did that feel?

It was great. After three rounds I get paired with Tiger for the Sunday finish in the last group. He was like six shots in front. 

I remember the most nervous I’ve ever been on a golf course was on the first tee that day. I said to Matty ‘I don’t think I can hit 3-wood here, I might actually miss the ball.’ It was nice to play with the big guy and see him win that day.